Dana White claims ‘behind the scenes’ issues contributed to UFC’s latest Arman Tsarukyan title shot snub

UFC CEO Dana White hints there’s more to the story behind Arman Tsarukyan’s latest title shot snub that hasn’t been made public.

Justin Gaethje and Paddy Pimblett will battle for the interim UFC lightweight title next month at UFC 324 in Las Vegas. Amid the undisputed champion Ilia Topuria’s indefinite absence due to personal reasons, Pimblett and Gaethje will fight for the right to face Topuria upon his return to the Octagon.

This leaves consensus top contender, Arman Tsarukyan, again on the outside looking in when it comes to the lightweight title picture. After withdrawing from his scheduled fight against Islam Makhachev just hours before UFC 311, Tsarukyan has been on poor terms with the promotion and needs to ‘work his way back’ to another title shot, according to UFC CEO Dana White.

But White made some interesting comments about Tsarukyan earlier this week when asked about his standing in the lightweight division and the controversy surrounding the upcoming lightweight title fight.

Dana White: ‘Man s—‘ led to Arman Tsarukyan title shot snub

In a recent interview with The Mac Life, White hinted there’s more to the story with the UFC’s refusal to grant Tsarukyan the next lightweight title shot.

“He’s here. You know what I didn’t do? Didn’t cut him, didn’t go sideways with him,” White said of Tsarukyan. “We don’t dislike him.”

“It is what it is. It’s not like I’ve confronted Arman. Arman’s a man. He knows how this played out. He knows how this all went down behind the scenes. He knows. We all f—— know I don’t ever talk about this s— publicly…

“A lot of man s— happens in this f—— business, and we keep it between us men. It is what it is. Arman knows.”

Tsarukyan hasn’t fought since submitting Dan Hooker at UFC Qatar earlier this year. As of this writing, it’s uncertain when he’ll return to the Octagon, albeit it’ll likely come against another surging contender in the lightweight division.